background: fat-rich diet may alter oocyte development and maturation and embryonic development by inducing oxidative stress (os) in follicular environment. objective: to investigate the relationship between fat intake and oxidative stress with oocyte competence and embryo quality. materials and methods: in observational study follicular fluid was collected from 236 women undergoing assisted re...

This is a report of a case of an egg recovery procedure completed with manual suction instead of the automated negative pressure suction. A 35-year-old woman who was undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment had to undergo oocyte recovery using manual suction through a syringe instead of the automated negative pressure suction systems because of the failure of both the initial and repla...

The development of both the mammalian oocyte and the somatic cell compartments of the ovarian follicle is highly coordinated; this coordination ensures that the ovulated oocyte is ready to undergo fertilization and subsequent embryogenesis. Disruption of this synchrony results in oocyte developmental failure. Communication between the oocyte and companion somatic cells is essential for successf...

The oocyte-to-embryo transition refers to the process whereby a fully grown, relatively quiescent oocyte undergoes maturation, fertilization, and is converted into a developmentally active, mitotically dividing embryo, arguably one of the most dramatic transitions in biology. This transition occurs very rapidly in Caenorhabditis elegans, with fertilization of a new oocyte occurring every 23 min...

Assisted oocyte activation (AOA) is the technique that simulates the effect of sperm penetration into an oocyte inducing oocyte activation. This technique is used in combination with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to improve the outcome of the fertilization process. It is mostly beneficial and recommended in those cases, when classic ICSI fails. This accounts approximately up to 5 % of...

Delayed ovulation and delayed fertilization can lead to reduced developmental competence of the oocyte. In contrast to the consequences of postovulatory aging of the oocyte, hardly anything is known about the molecular processes occurring during oocyte maturation if ovulation is delayed (preovulatory aging). We investigated several aspects of oocyte maturation in two models of preovulatory agin...

BACKGROUND The free androgen index (FAI) calculated using total testosterone measured by immunoassay does not correlate with oocyte fertilization rates; however, there is considerable cross-reactivity for testosterone with other androgens by immunoassay that is not found using isotope dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). AIMS This study was done to determine rel...

High levels of glucocorticoids may alter reproduction, but little is known about their direct actions on oocyte maturation, fertilization and subsequent development. Earlier work suggested negative effects of cortisol or dexamethasone on oocyte maturation but differences were noted between animal models. Both glucocorticoids reduce the p34(cdc2)-cyclin B1 complex but it is unknown if other sign...

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to identify a possible correlation between serum levels of anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and oocyte quality, embryo developmental competence, and implantation potential. METHODS 4488 oocytes obtained from 408 patients undergoing ICSI cycles were evaluated. Oocyte dimorphisms, embryo quality on days two and three, blastocyst formation competence, fertilization rates, ...